PITTSBURGH --Roman Wilson’s highest snap count of the season is 22 when the Pittsburgh Steelers faced the Seattle Seahawks. However, ever since that game, Wilson’s snaps have continued to shrink. He has just one catch all season.
But why, after a dynamite preseason that saw Wilson flash and put himself on the map, have the Steelers not done more to involve him in the offseason?
Head coach Mike Tomlin says it often comes down to how many two tight end sets the Steelers have run, and when they run two wide receivers, Calvin Austin III and DK Metcalf get that nod most of the time.
“It might just be our selection of personnel group,” Tomlin said about Wilson. “We’ve been talking a lot about multiple tight ends, Spencer Anderson reporting as eligible, the utilization of multiple tight end groups. His lack of participation might not mean anything relative to his performance or what’s going on at his position. It might just mean how we choose to deploy our personnel groups through the first month of the season. It’s still very early in this process. We got thirteen straight games ahead of us. So, keep watching.”
Meanwhile, when the team has needed someone to step up in case of injury, the other star of the summer, Scotty Miller, is who they have turned to in those instances.
“Roman’s progressing. He’s doing a good job. You know, I’ve gotten that question a bit from a lot of people, and he’s doing great. There’s no ‘Roman’s in the doghouse’ or anything like that. Roman’s doing just fine,” wide receivers coach Zach Azzanni said last week. “We just happen to be pretty good at tight end and wideout and what we’re doing, running the ball. But Roman, he’s in the mix just like all the other guys. Obviously, his role will keep elevating as the season goes on, for sure. Organically. And it will just start to happen. I just tell him, ‘When it happens, be ready. Be ready for that opportunity.’ Just like that (recovering an) onside kick (against Minnesota). And he was.”
If Austin has to miss time with a shoulder injury suffered against the Minnesota Vikings, Wilson would be in contention to take over that role, but it seems Miller would be the first in line.
The preseason showed that Wilson has a skillset that can pop, even against starters. Wilson played just two drives against the Jacksonville Jaguars, but in that time, he beat starting cornerback Tyson Campbell on a crosser. He finished with two receptions for 26 yards, an impressive outing for him.
Against the Buccaneers, Wilson carried that momentum into his second preseason game. He dusted quarters coverage from Jamel Dean over the top on a post route, hauling in a 42-yard connection from Mason Rudolph. Later on, he would separate on a crosser easily, gaining a chunk of 30 yards on another reception.
However, the regular season is a different beast, and in order for Wilson to gain more snaps, he has to become more well-rounded as a player
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